Ninja of the Shadows, A Naruto Story
by Erom Reven
Summary: Commanded by his ambitious and beautiful wife to adopt the 3 day old Naruto, Nara Shikaku unknowingly changes Naruto's destiny. Will he and his brother Shikamaru change the ninja world? I'm back, baby!
1. Genesis

I decided to write my own fanfiction. WHOOPEE!

To introduce myself, I am Erom Reven, a reverse of Never more. I like Naruto, Harry Potter, Zelda, and Kingdom Hearts, though I doubt I'll do a crossover.

This is an alternate universe of Naruto. As you all know, Naruto is an orphan. The author's use of Shikamaru lately has piked my imagination:

What if Shikaku is urged by his wife to adopt the infant Naruto?

I'm probably gonna make this a NaruHarem and ShikaHarem, but that's way in the future

With out further ado:

Chapter 1

"How troublesome…"

A man with dark hair and new scar near his eye looked at his newborn son.

Kyuubi had just been sealed. The 4th Hokage had just had a funeral, and a blonde haired newborn was up for adoption. Nobody wanted the kid though. After all, every one knew the immense evil power inside this boy, and was afraid it would come back.

That didn't stop Nara Shikaku. His beautiful wife, Yoshino had seen the poor boy. Shikaku thought his wife wouldn't want another, especially after Shikamaru was born not but 3 weeks ago.

But his wife was stubborn, and he was whipped.

"So, Shikamaru, you want a brother?" he asked, looking at his son.

The child looked at his father and smiled, as if agreeing, then closed his eyes.

"What a quiet baby you have, Shikaku-san."

Shikaku nearly jumped out of his skin.

"Hello, Sandaime-sama."

"I'm not the Hokage anymore. It is thankful Tsunade was here. Not only has she healed a good majority of the injured, she has decided to become Hokage. Though it was mostly due to Arashi's convincing before he… passed on." Sarutobi frowned.

"I'm actually glad you wish to adopt him. I found out something very interesting about him." Sarutobi continued.

"What is it?"

"He possesses wind and shadow element based chakra."

"But shadow chakra is only found in the Nara family…"

"You remember how your sister was pregnant before the Kyuubi attack?"

"No way…"

"Yes. Naruto is the son of your sister Ayumi and…" The aged man bent over and whispered something into Shikaku's ear.

"And also, I'm sorry about your sister…" the former Hokage left, leaving Shikaku to his thoughts.

- -Scene Change- -

Yoshino was very… excited, to say the least. She had always wanted a big, powerful ninja family. She was the mother of the heir of the shadow wielding Nara clan, and she had "convinced" her husband to adopt the child who possessed the Kyuubi.

Shikaku had just entered the living room, two bundles in his arms.

Yoshino squealed in happiness, then grabbed her two sons.

Shikamaru was all ready starting to look like his father from what Yoshino had seen of the man's baby pictures. He had a small tuft of black hair growing on his small head, and a hint of a lazy look was starting to appear on the somehow still asleep infant.

Naruto, however, was quite different. He was wide awake, but quiet, strange for a 3 day old child. He had large blue eyes and three dark whisker marks, and the oddest thing about this baby (aside from the marks of a Jinchuriki, that is): he had a full head of blonde hair.

Yoshino smiled, looking up at her husband.

"I can't believe I'm the mother of these two beautiful babies…" she said.

"Yeah… it's great…" Shikaku said, frowning a little.

"What's wrong, honey?" Yoshino asked, worried.

"Naruto's my nephew. The funniest thing though, is that my sister went had a kid with-"

At that, Naruto started whining a little, waking up Shikamaru, who promptly started crying. Yoshino sighed a little bit, took off her shirt, and fed the two children.

Shikaku, knowing his wife's discomfort at having others around while she fed Shikamaru, (and now Naruto) left the room to prepare a dinner for he and his wife.

-end-

Well, it's kinda short for a chapter, but it's only the prologue/first chapter.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but a few books, a couple of old baseball cards, and a computer. What makes you think I own something as valuable as Naruto?

Tune in for the next chapter!

Due between Sunday through next Saturday!


	2. Sunrise

I wasn't expecting all of that…. 11 reviews and 500+ hits on the first chapter? Awesome.

Yeah, baby Shika and Naruto… I imagine that would be cute…As for Naruto being the Fourth's kid? We'll see. Naruto being a typical male Nara? What blasphemy! Naruto has way too much energy to look at the clouds all day. But he will be a lot calmer and more analytical, and like all of the other Naras, he'll be whipped. I mean, come on, Yoshino is made out to nag more than my mother, and that's saying something…

Members for harems:

Naruto:

Hinata

Fem! Haku

Ino?

Sasame (Filler girl)

Ayame (Ramen girl)

Fem! Kyuubi

Tenten?

For Shikamaru

Wow… my mind was read…

Kin

Temari

Tayuya

Ino?

I'm not sure where to put Ino. Hell, I might put her in the 3rd category, the Sas-uke harem: Sakura, Orochimaru(lol)

Naw. Just playing, well, at least about Orochimaru-san! (or am I?)

This chapter takes place about a month and a half before Academy exams.

I think that's it.

And without further ado:

Chapter 2

-start-

Naruto and Shikamaru. Those two names commanded emotion from the village of Konoha. The Nara brothers were even known by the Fire Daimyo. Why were the two so well known?

The Nara brothers were simply the **greatest** pranksters that had ever hit the Fire Country.

With Shika's genius and Naruto's wit and quick thinking, the boys had pranked **EVERY** house in Konoha. The boys were hardly ever caught, but it was assumed that all of the pranks were theirs.

Naruto, was a short boy who like the color orange. His clothes were the same as every other Nara, with the Nara clan symbol and all, but Naruto's was orange. He was quite hyper, compared to his brother, and always wanted to learn new jutsus. In fact, ever since Naruto could move his shadow, he had been learning jutsus from his father, who dragged Shikamaru out of bed to learn them too.

Shikamaru was tall and a little on the lanky side. He loved to watch the clouds, and, though it would be too troublesome to say it out loud, he liked to prank people with his brother.

-At the academy-

"Naruto, Shikamaru, wake UP!" Umino Iruka yelled.

"Don't wanna…"

"Too troublesome…"

"Don't make me call your mother!"

At that, the two boys sprung to life.

"Please, Iruka-sensei, don't call mom!" Naruto begged.

"Then do a henge, Naruto."

"Into what?"

"I dunno, you choose. You do it too, Shikamaru."

Shikamaru and Naruto both went to the front of the classroom, slowly inching their shadows closer together.

'That jutsu, dear brother?' Naruto asked over the shadow link.

'That jutsu.' Shikamaru confirmed.

The boys gather chakra at the same time, and did the handseals for the transformation technique.

"Henge!" the boys yelled at the same time.

Where the boys had been standing, two gorgeous girls, one blonde, the other a raven haired beauty.

Iruka, being a guy, normally wouldn't mind two beautiful girls. Of course, these females were naked. Which, according to a Japanese old wives tale, a pervert will have a bloody nose when subjected to a naked woman.

Iruka was taken to the hospital, where they had to get him a blood transfusion, and Mizuki taught the rest of the class.

-scene change-

"Mom, we're home from the academy!" Naruto yelled, opening the door to his house, to see his mother sitting on the couch, apparently waiting.

"Oh, welcome home, Naruto-kun, Shikamaru-kun. You know, I heard something very interesting about your teacher, Iruka. I heard that he had to go to the hospital on account of blood loss. Of course, my two boys would have anything to do with that, would they?" the mother said sweetly.

"Heh heh… how much trouble are we in, mom?"

Yoshino smiled evilly.

-scene change-

The two boys stood in front of the Yamanaka flower shop, a bucket and squeegee in each of their hands.

"Remember; get the whole window, Naruto! You too, Shika!" Ino said, supervising the operation.

"Troublesome woman…" Shika said, barely dodging a flying potted plant launched at him by an angry blonde girl.

And so, a long day of cleaning the Yamanaka flower shop, our two heroes staggered home. (The flower shop in question had never had such a sparkling shine to its windows and floors before)

"So, how was your time at Ino's, boys?" Shikaku asked reading the newspaper, and not really paying attention to his sons.

"It was great, dad…" Shikamaru said, going upstairs to his room.

"Honestly, the girl is more of a slave driver than mom is. I think Shika's in love, dad. Waste of cuteness, in my opinion." Naruto said, teasing his older brother who flinched at the comment.

"Shut up, moron."

"You like her, admit it."

"You like her, admit it." The boys said at the same time.

Shikaku just laughed.

"I heard what you did to Iruka-san today. Funny, but don't do it again, okay?"

"Yes, father." Naruto said

"Whatever." Shikamaru replied

The boys went up to their room and went to sleep, without any dinner.

-end-

Meh… I didn't like this chapter. I was going to end it at the Mizuki taught the rest of class, but then I would have been able to include Ino. Do both boys actually like the blonde girl? Will Naruto ever find out that he was adopted? Will the readers ever forgive me for who I plan Naruto's biological father is? ( I'll give a hint: I'll have to seriously feck up the time stream or something). Finally, will someone please get me my damn coffee?

Find out, next chapter.

Due between Tuesday – Next Wednesday

Next chapter preview:

Naruto: Hi, as you know, I'm Nara Naruto, and I'm about to become the Hokage!

Shika: You have to graduate the academy exams first, you dolt, and then there's the whole fact that a Genin is on the bottom of the totem pole, whereas a Kage is on top. And bro, trust me, you're far from there. You can't even do a Bunshin!

Naruto: I don't care! Hey, do you think my problem's chakra control? Maybe I could ask that cute quiet girl in the back of class, what's her name? Hinato? Hinata! That's it!

Chapter 3: Help me do a bunshin, please! You're a weird girl, Hinata-chan!


	3. Education

Holy crap…. 26 reviews. 6 C2s, 2000+ hits, 12 favs, and 49 alerts. Thank you for liking my story so much. I'm astonished, really.

Big question, do you want a harem fic where Naruto has a bunch of wives in the end, or one main wife that wins out in the end?

Pros about full harem:

They're always fun to read

No loose ends that need to be tied romance wise

Cons:

I'm barely able to pull off one romance, and I doubt my abilities to pull it off well.

And Naruto's father has been decided (on this fic, of course), but it's not who I wanted it to be. It was originally going to be Hatake Sakumo, but that would be too much thinking on my part, seeing is how he's dead even in Kakashi Gaiden. Naruto's father is: Orochimaru! dodges random objects thrown his way I'm just kidding, gawd!

Well, my disclaimer is in chapter 1.

Chapter 3

-begin-

The biggest day of the year for would-be ninjas was only a week away. Iruka had recovered from his "injury" and resumed teaching the day after he got out of the hospital.

To get his revenge, he decided to make the exam this year a little more interesting.

"You have to make at least 5 bunshins on the exam to pass the ninjutsu portion of the exam. As you know, you must pass 2 out of three portions on the practical part of the exam, and a 75 percent on the written portion. So, I EXPECT you all to study. Now, it's time for lunch. Ja!" Iruka disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

-scene change-

Naruto and Shikamaru were sitting under their tree that they usually sat at, eating their boxed lunch.

"I'm screwed, aren't I, dear brother?" Naruto said with a grimace, as he ate his sandwich (peanut butter and banana, for those who must know).

"You mean the bunshin test? Yeah. It is troublesome, but unlike you, I don't have too much chakra to perform it." Shikamaru observed.

"Yeah. It really doesn't help having too much chakra. The basic control techniques they've taught us really don't work for me anymore. Normally having so much chakra is a good thing, especially since our shadow techniques are so draining for our level. Still, without another control technique, I'm S-O-L."

"Hmm…" Shikamaru had gotten into his thinking stance, planning moves Naruto could make.

"I have an idea. You know Hinata, right?" the dark haired boy asked.

"Yeah, the shy girl that never talks?" the blonde brother answered.

"Well, she's a Hyuuga…"

"And that means?"

"Hyuugans know some excellent chakra control techniques, from what I've heard."

"You have a point, bro?"

"You dolt, ask her for some help!"

"Why can't I just ask Iruka-sensei?"

"Plot purposes." Shikamaru said to his dumber brother.

"Huh?" Naruto asked, confused.

"You know; our master plan to get you instated as Hokage? You need a 9 clan head support, and she's the Hyuuga heir. Moron."

"Oh."

"Now, go start winning over a clan!"

-scene change-

Hyuuga Hinata was quiet blue haired girl with pale silver-lavender eyes. She liked to keep to herself. Well, she didn't like, but her shyness killed any social life she had. Sad, really.

Hinata quietly ate her cinnamon buns and drank the can of juice she had packed.

Her silence was broken by a loud voice belonging to one Nara Naruto

"Hey Hinata, can I sit with you?"

Hinata nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Y-yes…" she blushed. Thee Hyuuga Heiress was different in a romantic sense. Whereas most females in her class like Sasuke, Hinata found the boy too much like her bastard of a father. Rather, she went for exact opposite: Loud, abrasive, and emotional.

"You okay? Looks like you have a fever…" Naruto said, raising his hand to Hinata's forehead.

"I'm f-fine, Na-naruto-kun. W-what did you need?"

"Well, you're a Hyuuga, and I heard your clan has some really good techniques when it comes to chakra control. I need to improve my chakra control be the exams. I don't want to seem like I'm asking a favor for nothing, but I really need some help. Can you teach me, Hinata?" Naruto said, laying out his problems. For added effect, he used puppy dog eyes no jutsu to help sway the girl.

"W-why didn't you ask Iruka-sensei?" Hinata asked.

"I didn't want to bother him, and you're the only one not obsessed with Uchiha-teme to the point of not helping me." Naruto explained, though his attention was starting to wander.

"O-okay… I'll try and help you, Naruto-kun, but I'm not that good." Hinata said with a sad look.

"Nonsense. You're as good as you think you are! And I think you're good enough to be a better genin than me."

"B-but..."

"No buts. You're better than me. I just think you're not confidant enough to show that you're the best. I feel that if you believed in yourself, you'd kick Sasuke's ass quite frequently." Naruto was pulling no punches. He needed help quite desperately. He then bowed, keeping his head down.

"Please, Hinata, teach me how to control my chakra! I beseech you!"

"Okay… first, I need to see your chakra coils, as to know how much control you need. Mold a little chakra, Naruto-kun."

Naruto complied, forming a handseal as Hinata activated her Byakugan.

She gasped in shock.

"Naruto-kun, your chakra is in 4 colors! There's blue, black, yellow, and even a little red! This is very different. I could be wrong, but the reason that you have such a hard time with controlling all of that chakra is that humans have normally a blue chakra. Chakra of a different color is normally more potent. Your chakra is more potent, and you draw on too much to use a bunshin. Naruto-kun, if you could control this, you would be able to use a lot of ninjutsu without the normal strain. This is amazing!" Hinata said excitedly.

"Hey, Hinata… you're not stuttering anymore!"

Hinata blushed.

Naruto went on. "I think the black chakra is my shadow chakra. It's a chakra element like wind and fire, but it's more of a bloodline than anything else. I think my dad mentioned something about the off chance of someone being born outside the Nara clan with shadow chakra, it just hasn't happened yet. But for the other colors, I have no idea. So what should I start on?"

"Do you know how to climb trees without your hands?" Hinata asked.

"I know the principle, but I can't figure out how. You mold chakra to your feet at a constant stream. I just learned about it a week ago, but it's really hard to get my chakra that focused without a lot of concentration." Naruto said, honestly.

"Try doing it. I'll watch with my Byakugan."

Naruto ran at a tree, chakra gathering. He went up about 6 steps, but suddenly was thrown back a foot from the tree. He flipped in midair and landed on his feet.

"Well?"

"It's as I thought, Naruto-kun. You accidentally drew on the yellow chakra that time. That's your problem."

"Thanks, Hinata! Before I start training later, I'm going to go get some ramen at Ichiraku's. Do you want to go? I'm going to see if Shika will come, but I doubt it. It's always more fun to eat ramen with someone else,so…"Naruto was cut off.

"YES! Come by the Hyuuga Manor at 5:00!" a very happy Hinata exclaimed. She skipped away happily, leaving Naruto with a sweatdrop and half a clue of what went on.

The bell rang for the end of lunch.

Naruto smiled as he started back towards class.

"You're a very weird girl, Hinata-chan." You couldn't beat off the small grin that he had for the rest of class.

-end-

Yeah, so Naruto and Hinata might be out of character, but the funniest thing is, and you might not realize it on this site, but this is fanfiction. Hell, I've even made Tsunade the Hokage early. (Though I'm not sure how the Invasion Arc or Find Tsunade arc are going to turn out now)

While this is a NarutoHarem currently, that's subject to change. The main pairing of the harem, either choice that's made, is going to be NaruHina. Sure, it looks like NaruSaku's gonna be cannon, but it isn't yet. Which leaves us NaruHina fans with some hope.

And I realize I have not cleared my gender, leaving some confused. I am male, as last I checked.


	4. Friend

Why is the fact I'm a guy surprising everybody? It's pretty funny to me. Must be the reason that all of my female friends say I'm the best guy in the world or something. But yes, a guy is what I am. Getting on to the vague review replies… I write longer chapters the more I get into a story. I apologize for the fact that the first 10 chapters are probably going to be only 4 to 6 pages long, but once I get comfortable in the story, I'll do my best to make them long and full of wholesome goodness, but if you hadn't noticed, each chapter has gotten longer by about 300 words.

I agree on the fact that the anime throws multiple NaruHina moments in our faces, but the newest chapters are leaving something to be desired in the way of Hinata. As for the multiple chakra colors,... heh heh.

Yes, different life experiences would have changed our characters a lot. I imagine Tsunade being the 5th a lot sooner than the canon changes a few things. Maybe I'll even let Hizashi live?

On the topic of Naruto's whiskers. Before Naruto II came out, I always thought that they were scars of a villager attack who carved them on his cheeks. Morbid, yes, but it was a theory.

And because it adds comedic elements, any references to a higher power, be it God, Allah, Yahweh, Kami-sama, Zeus, Brahman, Buddha, or the Jedi will all be referred to as "whoever is out there" or something similar, as to not offend anyone.

Disclaimer: In chapter 1

On with the show….

Chapter 4

-begin reading here-

Naruto thanked whoever out there he managed to avoid his mother at home. While the woman showed no ninja abilities, she had the uncanny ability to know more about what went on in his day than he did.

(At this, Yoshino sneezed on her wireless recording equipment)

Naruto showered and dressed in a simple black shirt with an orange Nara symbol on the sleeve, and a pair of baggy blue carpenter jeans. Looking at a mirror, he wondered what he'd look like with goggles and an orange jumpsuit, but shuddered at the thought. He didn't like orange _that_ much.

He walked out the door, whistling a tune and saying "We are fighting dreamers…" every so often.

-scene change-

Hinata was frantic. She was about to go out on a date (however one-sided that thought was) with her beloved Naruto-kun. She put on a light blue Chinese style she had gotten from Tenten, her cousin's teammate, with black capris. She had brushed her hair to perfection and even used a little bit of makeup for once!

She was also giggling…

She hoped her father had not heard her, as he'd probably go into a rant saying how she is a weak Hyuuga because true Hyuuga never giggle. They merely smirk.

That stopped the giggles, but her smile was hot-glued on her lips.

-scene change-

Naruto paced outside the Hyuuga gate. It wasn't that difficult to find, as it was the biggest set of houses in Konoha. Naruto felt a small knot in his stomach, but he casually dismissed it as hunger.

"Naruto-kun?" a small voice came out of nowhere. Hinata had appeared behind him as his back turned from the gate. It quite frankly scared the crap out of him.

Naruto turned to look at Hinata, who was blushing. Naruto looked at the Hyuugan princess and smiled.

"You look nice, Hinata! Now let's go get that ramen! Believe it!" (A/N:gags)

Hinata frowned. "Naruto-kun, please refrain from yelling "Believe it!" constantly. If you keep on, I will not teach you how to control chakra. Are we clear?" Hinata asked, her voice like ice.

Naruto had the decency to be very frightened.

-later, at Ichiraku's-

"So you're gonna tell me when I use any other chakra than blue?"

Hinata nodded.

The two quickly finished their ramen, making small talk. To Hinata's credit, she stuttered twice. She found out about Naruto's shadow abilities, and a lot about his home life. They briefly touched on why a lot of villagers looked frightened or had glared at him up until a few months ago, but couldn't really think of something that would spook the villagers like that his whole life.

Naruto, on the other hand, learned a lot about Hinata. It almost seemed like she had rehearsed everything. Naruto found that she had a fondness for sweets, particularly cinnamon buns.

He also had slightly touched on a small amount of bitterness when they talked about her family, and she quickly changed the topic.

All in all, the two became friends very quickly. Before this surprises anyone, Hinata had wanted friendship with Naruto for years, and Naruto had the ability to make friends with the devil, if he wanted to.

-scene change-

Naruto and Hinata were at a training site near the academy. Naruto had been at it for an hour already, and had really started to get down drawing the right chakra, though the yellow and red were impossible to filter every time unless Naruto concentrated, a luxury not always available in a fight.

Hinata, when not paying attention to Naruto, day dreamed about the blonde haired pale eyed kids.

Naruto and Hinata trained with each other until the exam. Since they started on Monday, Naruto had gotten drawing the right chakra down to a science by Thursday, but he still couldn't make a good clone as well as he wanted. Hinata comforted him by saying that controlling his amounts of chakra to being able to make something as petty as an illusionary clone would take a while, and he should work with what most people would call more taxing jutsu.

Hinata did not slack off either. Meeting with her crush on a daily base for an hour or so and training with him had boosted her confidence to a level almost as high as our blonde prankster. With that said, Hinata found that Naruto's amazing healing abilities made him a perfect training dummy whenever the pair worked on taijutsu training.

When not training, two went to the Grand Konoha Gardens. It turned out that Naruto loved taking care of plants, a hobby Hinata shared with him. Yes, things were good… for a while, anyway.

-scene change-

Iruka, back from the hospital and fully healed, could only imagine what had caused the blonde Nara and the Hyuuga princess to spend time together. (Even more curious was that Shikamaru sneezed rather loudly when the teacher completed his thought.)

For a minute, the Chunin pondered on the fact that no one could manage to locate the makers of many new pranks. These pranks in question screamed of Nara, but seemed to have a new air about them, almost regal in a way.

Iruka twitched as the Nara brothers and, oddly enough, Hinata sneezed. Was there a cold going around?

The teacher sighed, sipping his coffee. He looked at his partner in teaching, Mizuki. The white haired ninja nodded.

"Students, it is time to begin your exams. When Mizuki calls your name, come down to the front and collect the written portion of your exam. And for those of you with recon abilities, particularly you, Kiba and Naruto, please disable them so to create a more level playing field for the other students."

Said Inuzuka and Nara grumbled.

-later-

Naruto put down his pencil. He hated written exams. He briefly toyed around with banning all paperwork of non vital importance, such as tests, when he was Hokage.

The blonde shadow wielding ninja raised his hand.

"Sensei, I'm finished."

Iruka traveled to the blonde's seat, grabbing his test. The teacher went down to his desk, placing the test on it.

"Now, class, Mizuki will take you outside to test your knowledge on herbs." Iruka announced, taking his seat.

When Tsunade assumed the title of Hokage, she almost instantly made her first order to teach basic herbalism and medical ninjutsu at the Academy, which she personally saw to it that the chunin instructors learned it.

Iruka had been surprised when Naruto turned out to be the best at the herbal aspect of the medical course when it was expected that Ino or Hinata would take up that mantle.

Iruka then focused on grading the exams. He stopped for a minute at Naruto's paper. As expected, Naruto had gotten about half of the exam right. What had shocked the teacher was the absence of an erased "Sakura" surrounded by a heart doodle. Instead, where the chunin had expected the pink haired girl's name, there was the remnant of a "Hinata".

The teacher smirked. If he was right, the blonde Nara was about to cause all hell to break loose. Smiling, the teacher's hidden prankster soul flared to life. Provided Naruto pass the exams, Iruka knew exactly who was going on each team.

-even later-

Naruto had passed the herbology exam with flying colors, and had gotten fairly decent scores in the ninjustu part of the medic exam. For Taijutsu, he came out close to the top, bested only by Uchiha Sasuke and Inuzuka Kiba. Unfortunately, his genjutsu was quite lacking, scoring him a 35 out of a possible 100 points on that portion of the exam.

It was now time for the final test.

Bunshin no jutsu, the clone technique.

Naruto waited for his turn. Hinata and Shikamaru both passed this part. Iruka had been drawing random names out of a hat, and fate seemed to be a cruel mistress.

Finally, the last name came out of the hat.

"Nara Naruto, it is your turn."

Naruto walked down to the front of the classroom, sweating a little bit. He gulped nervously as he turned to face his classmates. His blue eyes landed on his brother and Hinata. The lazy ninja nodded at his blonde haired brother, while the Hyuuga princess gave him an encouraging smile.

Naruto's blue eyes hardened in seriousness, as the Nara ran through the handseals. Naruto's chakra flared.

"Bunshin no jutsu!"

!#$&()+

Damn. I made a cliffhanger. Sorry I couldn't get this out as fast as I wanted. I was unfortunately forced into reading The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter a week after each other. This also hampered my creativity, causing it to take longer to write a longer chapter.

While I'm on length, if I get another comment on shortness of chapter, I'll be pissed. Sorry if I sound a little rude, but this fanfiction you've been reading is my little world. Not that I own anything other than the computer I write on. I control what goes on in this fanfiction. I'll consider reviewer advice, simply because the reviewers are the customers of fanfiction, and I aim to get a high customer satisfaction rating. But, bitching about chapter length won't get you anywhere. Look at it this way: by reading my short chapters, you free up more time to read another fanfiction, which is probably better than mine. Just know that I try my best to make a chapter around 1500 words. The first 2 don't count because I consider them a prologue and a warm up, respectively. I don't care whether you say my story is worse than listening to a mash up of "She bangs" by William Hung and the teletubbies theme song for 50 straight hours, just don't bitch about chapter length.

Note: Naruto, as far as everyone not privy to the Kyuubi secret knows, is Shikamaru's fraternal twin brother. He also doesn't know he was adopted. All I will say about this now, that when Naruto finds out, it's not going to be pretty. Oh dear. I'm being indiscreet here.

Anyway, ranting aside, I do hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Next chapter: Foxglove.

(Whoever can figure out what Naruto's future abilities are… gets the satisfaction of knowing something the author doesn't)


	5. Discovery

Since a lot of you said Shikamaru should come and save him and help. I still think Iruka should, so… heh heh heh.

It seems that you all want Shika to be on Team 7. Kaka-sensei's staying with Sasuke-teme. Since you all want it like that, I'm going to have to rewrite every team, the second time.

Also, how many times do I have to tell everyone that long chapters are hard for me to write? Currently, I have a lot of crap going on, and that was the cause of the long wait between the chapter. I'm sorry I couldn't write when I was busy trying to not fail my classes. Next time I hear another length complaint, I'm going to stop posting this story on this site, and I'm being completely serious. No more.

Sorry for the rant, but it irks me. Thanks for the help those who did /gives cookies\

-begin-

"Clone Technique!"

Nara Naruto became covered in a puff of smoke.

Where the Nara boy had stood, there were now 5. Two of them were standing. Two others were lying on the floor, pale and dead looking. The last one was the worst off. Its face was disfigured, and the clone was very misshapen, missing an arm and having a short leg.

The real Naruto and the perfect clone looked at the other clones.

"Tada?" the Nara blonde said weakly. A few people laughed, but were silenced by glares from Iruka, Shikamaru, and surprisingly, Hinata and Ino.

The blonde hung his head in defeat as he went back to seat.

"Iruka-san, shouldn't we just pass him? He's taken this thing three times already, and he finally managed to produce a good clone." Mizuki asked, smirking.

The brown haired teacher frowned. "No. As much as I want to, every other student could make at least 3 clones. Testing is now over. You all may go home. Naruto… I know you usually come back the day after you fail the exam, but I don't think that would be best. Class dismissed."

-scene change-

Naruto sat on an old swing in front of the academy, looking depressed. All that hard work, and for what? Absolutely nothing.

'Darn it! I really wanted to do it this time! I even did a good clone! Why didn't they pass me?' Naruto thought, angrily. He saw Shikamaru and Hinata approaching.

"I'm sorry, guys, but I just want to be alone." Naruto then walked off, not caring about his brother or his friend.

-scene change-

Naruto stared into the sunset, not thinking, barely even a part of the world. It startled him when he heard a voice on the rooftop he was sitting on.

"Hey, Naruto."

"Mizuki-sensei? What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing. You wanna talk?"

"Not really," the blonde said bluntly.

Mizuki sat down beside Naruto anyway.

"Iruka's looking out for you. He looks on you like a kid brother. You act a lot like him. He was a big prankster when he was your age. He doesn't have anything against you Naruto. If anything, Iruka wants to make sure you can survive in the real world. Being a ninja isn't all about saving princesses and killing bandits, you know? He wants to know you're ready."

"But Mizuki-sensei, I am ready."

"I know you are, Naruto. That's why I did a little research. There's a second way to pass. But you can't get caught. If you are, you can never become a ninja. Are you interested?" Mizuki said, his hopes up.

The blonde Nara looked skeptical, but this could be his only chance to pass, now. He knew he'd never be able to perform the clone technique right.

"I'll do it."

Mizuki smirked. This was too easy.

-end-

-just kidding, scene change!-

Naruto snuck through the shadows of the Hokage's tower. The scroll library was his destination, and the Forbidden Scroll of Seals was his prize. He had made it through undetected, which worried him. Sure, he was stealthy when he wanted to be, but the fact that security was this lax around the Hokage's personal scrolls? An S-Rank missing nin or two could sneak in, fight around with a few jounin, and still leave without being fully detected. He shook the thought. Naruto looked through the scrolls, finding the one he quested for.

"What are you doing here, Naruto?"

Naruto laughed nervously.

"G-g-gondaime-sama! Fancy seeing you here!" Naruto said, smirking at the female Hokage.

He then snapped his fingers, causing his hand to emit a small light.

"What are you doing, Naruto? Last time I ask without breaking something."

"Bye, Hokage-sama!" a multitude of shadow strings connected to the Hokage's shadow.

"I call this my Shadow Lockdown. Good for a prankster. Cool, huh? It'll wear off in a few hours." Naruto said, as he took the scroll and jumped out the nearest window.

-scene change-

Iruka was about to lie down on his bed when he heard a knock on his door.

"Come in!" he called.

Nara Shikamaru came in, hands in his pockets.

"Where's my brother?" he asked, shutting the door.

"How should I know? I thought he was with you!"

Another knock was heard on the door.

"IRUKA! Naruto has stolen the Forbidden Scroll of Seals!"

"What?" Iruka and Shika said simultaneously.

"Hurry! We have to find him before ANBU does!"

The three ninja (heh) went off, but Shikamaru noticed something odd.

'How does he know? If he managed to sneak past Tsunade, chances are he used our new shadow lockdown tags. That would have kept Yondaime-sama captive for a while. Tsunade couldn't have made an announcement yet. Which means this is a trap.'

"How troublesome."

-scene change-

Naruto laid on the ground, exhausted. He had finally achieved success in making a Shadow clone, which he had figured would be easy with the shadow element chakra he had. It turned out to have nothing to do with the Shadow element, but it was a whole lot easier for him to use than a normal clone.

He groaned and sat up, reopening the scroll. He saw the second technique.

"Potential Unlock?" Naruto read out loud. "This skill unlocks portions of your inner power. Hmm… I should show this to Shika and Hina-chan."

He took out a kunai and cut out Shadow Clone Technique and the Potential Unlock and pocketed them, getting ready to look for Mizuki and give him the scroll.

"Naruto!" he heard, turning his head to the voice.

"Hey bro! Iruka-sensei! I only had time to learn one technique, but I still get to pass, right?"

"What are you talking about Naruto?"

"Mizuki- sensei told me that…" Shikamaru cut him off.

"Mizuki wants the Forbidden Scroll and used you to get it. He's probably misled the ANBU to stall them long enough for him to get the scroll. I don't think he expected us to find you first. We have to go, Naruto." Shikamaru said, looking somewhat panicked.

"I'm afraid I can't allow that, Shikamaru." A voice was heard in the trees.

It was Mizuki.

"Naruto, Shikamaru, RUN! I'll hold him off." Iruka said, as kunai flew at the trio.

The brothers did as they were told and ran, trying to not look back at their sensei.

The pair hid amongst the bushes and trees and watched the scene.

"Why protect him, Iruka? He's the one that killed your parents!" Mizuki yelled. Iruka was somewhat a friend, and he didn't want to kill him.

"Mizuki, it is forbidden to even mention that. Especially with Naruto near."

"What? He can't know his true origin? How he's not really Shikamaru's brother? How he is the demon Fox, Kyuubi?"

Naruto's eyes widened.

"NO!" Naruto screamed in terror.

Shikamaru just looked on, stunned.

"Gotcha, brat. The village will praise me for your death." Mizuki said, throwing a giant shuriken at Naruto.

Naruto covered his face in an attempt to shield the blow. It never came. Naruto opened his eyes to see Iruka shielding the Nara brothers, the shuriken in his back.

"Naruto… listen to me…you are not a demon… you are Nara Naruto, Kyuubi's prison warden. And Shikamaru, you and Naruto are still family, even if you aren't blood brothers. You are some of my best students. I'll put in a good word for you… when I get to the next world." Iruka's eyes closed and he fell to the ground, lifeless.

"Iruka…. Sensei… no…" Naruto and Shika said, at the same time.

"NOOO!"

-scene change-

Meanwhile, a Hyuuga Hinata felt a huge chakra spike.

"Naruto-kun? Shika-kun?" she whispered, worried. She went back to making her lunch boxes for her friends to eat tomorrow.

-scene change-

"You killed Iruka-sensei…" Naruto said, slouching into a feral looking pose.

"You're gonna pay." Shikamaru finished, mirroring his brother.

Their shadows connected, and they did the same hand sign.

"**MASS SHADOW CLONE TECHINQUE!**"

Hundreds of Shikamarus and Narutos surrounded Mizuki.

"Bring it on." The traitor challenged, and to quote the raven, became nevermore.

-end-

There. That's better. Love goes out to the people that helped me out of my slump. You're a life saver.

The final questions of tonight: Who is Naruto's real family? And who is new sensei going to be? Is Iruka alive?And just how does Mitarashi Anko feel about Iruka? All will be revealed, next time!


	6. Resolution

Are you all mad at me? I'm back, ain't I?

A few people complained about Iruka. Meh. Go cry me a river. I didn't want to do it either. But for story purposes…

I have also decided on a father for Naruto… and I'm disappointed that I couldn't pull off something different.

I even gave a hint to Naruto's future abilities two (or 3) chapters ago, and no one caught it. Go me! XD

And I assume they have phones. It makes sense, since they have wireless radios.

Disclaimer for chapter 5 and this one: I don't own Naruto or it's affiliates. Or anything else I throw in here that isn't original. That covers a wide range, so you can't sue me. Ha ha ha.

-

Chapter 6

-begin reading story-

Naruto and Shikamaru waited at the hospital for what seemed like a millennia. The brothers had mercilessly killed Mizuki after seeing Iruka being seemingly murdered in front of them.

The ANBU had came quickly to the site because of Naruto's huge chakra flare, which was said to have been felt throughout the village, even by villagers that were not normally attuned to chakra signatures. They had found Iruka and had taken the boys and the near lifeless teacher to the hospital.

A check up by the pediatrician and the Nara Brothers were good to go.

Finally, a doctor came out, looking tired.

"Nara-san, it is pleasing to report that Umino Iruka's condition has stabilized. He'll need extensive physical therapy to recover the use of his legs, as the nerves were slightly damaged, but they will be back to full use. We managed to restore them since you brought him in so quickly, but he'll be a while to recover," he said, smiling at Shikamaru, ignoring Naruto completely.

Even with the obvious dislike of Naruto and the mutual feeling back to the doctor, the tension in the air was less heavy.

"Anyway, you can come back tomorrow. He might be awake tomorrow, but he needs his rest. Tell Yoshino-san I said hello, please."

Shikamaru nodded, the events of the night numbing his brilliant mind.

Nothing could compare to what Naruto was feeling right now, though. Going through his mind were all of the memories of his family, or at least what he had thought was.

All those times he had called Yoshino his mother… and she wasn't? Who was his real family? And why was he picked out of all of the other kids that could have been born the day Kyuubi attacked? Questions plagued the blonde, and they drove him into a depression.

"Hey, Naruto? You don't have to come home tonight. I'll tell mom and dad about what's going on. I'll call Ino if you want. Her dad's about the only adult I know that likes you."

Naruto nodded, not even looking at his brother.

Shikamaru noticed this. "Hey, bro, even if it's not by blood, I'll always consider you my brother. You don't have to be real brothers for the connection, man."

Naruto said nothing, just staring at the door to Iruka's room, as Shikamaru left the hospital.

-an hour later-

Yamanaka Inoichi was not having a good day. His best friend's son called his house at midnight, when he was sleeping very peacefully, and had relayed what had happened to Naruto that night. He had to rush to prepare the guest room that hadn't been really used since their kids were smaller and slept over a lot. That all changed when Sasuke-_kun_ came into Ino's life, changing his sweet daughter.

So, Inoichi found himself at Konoha hospital at 1 in the morning, outside Umino Iruka's door. Naruto had fallen asleep in the chair beside it.

"Hey, brat, wake up." Inoichi poked the fox vessel.

"Hey Yamanaka-san…" the younger of the two said, opening his eyes. It was apparent that he had been feigning sleep. Inoichi flinched at the boy's bloodshot eyes.

"Come on… I'm taking you to my place." The man said. The boy slowly got up and took a last look at the door.

"Thank you, Yamanaka-san…" Naruto said quietly. The pair left the hospital, quiet as a mime.

They reached the Yamanaka household later, and Naruto went for the guestroom without a second thought.

-the next day-

Naruto was being poked by something. He turned over on the bed to ward it off.

"Naruto… GET YOUR LAZYASS OUT OF MY HOUSE!"

Crap… Ino.

"Good morning, beautiful!" Naruto said, sitting up. Ino gawked at him, before opening her mouth to scream.

"Don't say such things!" Ino said, blushing slightly. She hit him on the head for good measure.

"We just had a call from Iruka-sensei. He's fine. And the good part is, he says you passed, Naruto. He'll give you your headband when he gets out.'

Naruto jumped up out of bed and grabbed Ino into a dance.

"I'm a ninja! HAHA!" Naruto said, happily.

"Now go get a shower. My dad's still got some of his old clothes. You might be able to fit in them." Naruto happily obliged.

-scene change-

Inoichi had secretly gotten Naruto a graduation gift a few days ago. He favored the child a lot more than Sasuke, and wished Ino would feel the same.

He laid them out at the guest room bed. The guest bathroom had only a shower stall, and the small bathroom was connected directly to the guest room, so his precious daughter would never see any of the people that stayed overnight naked. Even Naruto.

After all, daddy's got to protect his little girl.

-scene change-

The clothes Naruto had found on the bed fit like a dream. The black ninja pants were tough, yet they flexible. It was covered in pockets ranging in size. The shirt was a black t-shirt with an orange spiral on the back and an orange Nara symbol on the shoulder. It had an overall cool effect.

It even came with black fingerless gloves with steel plates on the back of the hands and black geta for his feet.

Naruto checked himself over in the full body mirror. With his hair down on his forehead, he looked… badass.

The blonde shadow user left the room and came down for breakfast, to see a plate of scrambled eggs and a few strips of bacon lying on the table, with Ino and Inoichi beside it.

Ino looked up at him, and looked straight back down, blushing a little. Naruto and Inoichi saw this, and grinned, although for slightly different reasons.

Naruto's: _'If I'm making Ino blush, I must really look like a badass.'_

Inoichi's: _'SON IN LAW! YES!'_

Naruto took the chair in front of the father-daughter pair.

"Kiku-onee-san at work already?" Naruto asked, referring to Ino's mother.

"Yes. She left early today so we can close up early. You know, for the graduation?"

At this, Naruto and Ino both paled.

"WE'RE LATE!"

Naruto grabbed the plate and scarfed it down after a quick, "Itadakimasu!" with Ino following suit.

The blondes ran out the door together, leaving Inoichi to clean up the mess.

- - scene change - -

Ino and Naruto ended up at class right on time, with Ino panting a little more than Naruto.

The whole class stared at the two.

The girls all turned away, blushing at Naruto's badassness, while the males glared at the fact he had come in with one of the hottest kunoichi in their class.

Ino began to wrestle for a seat near Sasuke, who glared at Naruto. Naruto smiled back, ticking Sasuke off even further.

The blonde Nara ignored this and went to his seat between Hinata and Shikamaru.

Hinata looked ready to pass out.

"Oi, Hina-chan, you okay?" Naruto put his hand on her forehead, and the Hyuuga passed out, a small trickle of blood coming out of her nose.

Naruto frowned.

"Must be allergies." Naruto said, sighing. He turned to his brother and stared.

"So, how was Ino's?" Shikamaru asked, matching Naruto's blank stare.

"Great. How'd Mom and Dad take it?" Naruto asked, sitting.

"Mom cried, Dad held her, and they understood if you didn't want to come home anymore."

Naruto saddened.

"I'm coming home, but I couldn't do it last night. I just couldn't," he replied.

When Naruto was about to say more, the 3rd Hokage poofed in the room in his old jounin uniform.

"Alright, class, it's time to be sorted into teams."

Naruto only listened for his friends and his closer acquaintances.

There was Ino, Shino, and Kiba on a team led by a new jounin Naruto knew was Yuuhi Kurenai.

Chouji, Sakura, and Sasuke were on a team led by the famous Hatake Kakashi.

"And the last team, Team 10, The Nara brothers, and Hyuuga Hinata, will be led by joint leaders Mitasrashi Anko and Sarutobi Asuma." The third hokage finished.

Naruto's jaw dropped. The sheer luck of being teamed up with his best friends, and being under the leadership of the 3rd's son and Orochimaru's only loyal apprentice was causing him to jump for joy. This day was certainly better than it had been yesterday, that was for sure.

-end-

The next chapter starts right where this one lets off. But that's for later. I gotta work on the other stories now.


	7. Team

Meh...sorry for the wait. Been busy.

-start-

Naruto looked up.

"Hey, Sarutobi-sama... why are Shikamaru and I on the same team? I mean, Shika was the dead last, so shouldn't he be on the team with Sasuke and Sakura?"

The former Hokage smiled and nodded.

"Good question, Naruto. You see, while the person who is ranked is normally paired with the two brightest, in order to balance the teams. Hinata was already going to be put on Shikamaru's team as a medic, but as you have learned a jounin level kinjutsu, in record time, I might add, and coupled with your generally great scores at your exams, you have been bumped to a tie with Uchiha Sasuke. Congratulations."

The class looked over at Naruto, shocked, as he blushed and rubbed the back of his head. Well, Sasuke was glaring heavily at the blonde.

"_How did the dobe learn something like that?"_the Uchiha survivor asked in his head, pondering.

Kiba was the first to regain himself, and he turned around to face the old man.

"Why do they get two teachers, then?"

The professor frowned at the dog-boy's rashness, but answered anyway.

"Team ten is under a Special Jounin and a normal Jounin, this is true. However, Mitarashi Anko is going to be the normal sensei. Asuma is there to supervise Anko, as she needs to have experience with a genin team to become a jounin, one of the many ways Konoha has of reaching that rank. But, just because you have one sensei, don't let that stop you; Konohagakure has many jounin and special jounin that you can learn from independently." This seem top shut the boy up, and Sarutobi nodded.

"Well, that is all. Good luck out there, and-"

A loud crash, and the thud of two kunai hitting the ceiling. A flag unfurled, and a woman scantily clad in fishnet, a skirt, and trench coat appeared in front of it in a burst of smoke.

"Mitarashi Anko reporting, now, where are my brats?"

A dead silence erupted from the room.

The woman frowned, and the Third Hokage looked at her, blushing a bit.

"You interrupted my speech, Anko-chan... anyway, good luck, children. May the Will of Fire burn within you all." the retired Hokage nodded, and with a nod of his head, he disappeared with a burst of smoke.

The special jounin sighed, and looked up for her team.

"Team Ten, outside at that tire swing. Doubletime!" She said, disappearing in the same fashion as the Third Hokage.

The three teammates in question shot up and ran out, Shikamaru and Hinata heading out the door, Naruto, jumping out the window.

The three saw their teacher standing there by the tree, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Jeez, you kids don't know the Shunishin yet? Kami-sama, by your ages, I was already performing forbidden jutsu on a regular basis. What is 'Ruka-kun teaching you kids, anyway?"

Naruto, bless his soul, didn't miss a beat.

"How to avoid crazy, loud, scantily clad women on a regular basis... too bad he fails miserably at that, huh, Anko-sensei?"Naruto said.

Anko laughed, then threw a kunai at Naruto, cutting open his cheek.

"No sarcasm, brat." The three genin's eyes widened as the teacher was suddenly behind Naruto, arms around him and her tounge down, licking the blood off of a blushing Naruto.

"It's the kids like you that die first."

She got up and smiled, licking her lips.

"Ah... the taste of blood... it's so satisfying. Anyway, who are you three. I'm supposed to ask you three about your likes, dislikes, and..." she pulled out a small book: "Teaching a Genin team for Dummies", and snapped her fingers after a few seconds, putting the book back in her trench coat.

"Your dreams and hobbies. Lazy looking bastard, you first."

Shikamaru had been on the verge of dozing off beside the tree, and he shot back up.

"I'm Shikamaru. I like... clouds, and my friends. I dislike naggy women. I enjoy watching clouds, and my dream is to find a wife that's neither beautiful nor ugly, have two kids, a boy, then a girl, and when they're both able to take care of themselves, I'm going to retire from the shinobi life and play shogi until I die before my wife."

Naruto sighed, his normal reaction to his brother's odd dream.

He shook his head, and and took in a breath to speak his life, when Anko pointed at Hinata.

"You, there, girl."

"Umm... I'm... H-Hinata... I like... flower pressing, and my friends... and I don't really dislike anything... I want to become... the strongest Hyuuga clan head... ever." Anko frowned.

"You need more confidence, that's obvious. Well, that's all. Kids, meet at training ground 3 tomorrow. Don't be late." Anko said, blowing off Naruto entirely. The blond fumed, and picked up the kunai she had thrown at him. He threw it at her with all his might. She dodged it with ease as it penetrated into a tree, deeply.

"Oh? You have something to say, brat?"

"I AM NARA NARUTO!! I like ramen, my friends, my family, and I will protect them with my life. I dislike snotty people who think they are better than me. And you know what, Anko-_sensei_? I WILL BECOME THE HOKAGE! SO YOU HAD BETTER RESPECT ME!" Naruto said as she turned around.

The Special Jounin grinned.

"All right, kid, I'll hold you to it. Tomorrow, training field 3." She disappered with a flash, and left the three hanging.

"Well, Naruto, nice to dramatize everything..." Shikamaru said.

Hinata nodded.

"T-that was a little over the top..."

Naruto whined, "You too, Hinata-chan?"

The three ninja left the field, going home, unaware of the eyes that were watching them.

There was a man on the rooftops, clothed in a black robe with red clouds dotting it.

"It's all in place, Madara-sama... the Namikaze boy has begun to realize his powers, even if he does not notice it.

The man looked at the tree with the kunai, and it had begun to decay. He heard a whisper in his mind.

"_Yes... soon... the power of the foxglove will be mine..."_

The man lifted his cloak off his head, revealing a spiral mask painted orange with a single eyehole.

"Yes, soon, master... we shall have the Biju under our command, with that boy at the helm..."

The man in the spiral mask made a single hand seal, and blurred away.

--

Naruto sighed heavily, standing in front of his front, his brother behind him.

He opened it and took in a deep breath.

Naruto was wrapped in a hug by his mother, who began to cry onto his shoulder, Naruto patting her back gently.

"I'm home, mom. I don't care that I was adopted. It shocked me at first... but...Nara Yoshino is my mother, and Nara Shikaku is my father. I don't care who my parents really are. I don't care about the fox or anything... Mizuki was a bastard. I'll never leave you ever again, mom...I love you."

--

Aw... wasn't that sweet? Well, I got some good news: I'm back for real this time. I've been through a rough summer of hot days and busy nights, and hot nights with busy days, but I'm back and ready to play!


	8. Great News!

Hiya! A new and improved Erom Reven here. As some of you may have noticed, I've updated my Fairly oddparents story! My other fanfics are also in the process of getting a new look and design. Expect within the next two weeks a new Ninja of the Shadows along with a new chapter for it and Place 4 My Head. If demand is high enough, I will also redo Heros of Light.

Please, feel free to share any questions, concerns or comments with reviews and PMs! Thank you! I'll be seeing the lot of you very shortly!

Happy New Year!


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